Longing - SasuSaku fan fiction
by PokisMagicalWishes
Summary: The 25 year old Sakura Haruno has moved from her home town of Konoha to Osaka. There she gets a job at The Osaka Hospital and his promoted to be one of the main doctors. Everything is going smoothly, when a long forgotten face re-emerges from the past. Now, she has to nurse him back to full health. (SasuSaku; my first fan fiction!)
1. Chapter 1

**Longing.** – **Chapter I.; what have you done?**

Today, Monday, January 22th, 2018, was like any other day in Osaka hospital. There was no special operations or procedures to go through. Not that many people were sick, even. It was a good sign.

The head doctor of the Osaka hospital, Sakura Haruno, was in her office sorting out papers of all the patients that had had appointments booked for this week. It wasn't too many; and nobody had any special requierments. It was mostly middle aged, to elderly people, and most of those, Sakura knew personally by now, as they'd come here regularly.

Sitting by her office desk, the pinkette had finished sorting out the documents, neatly organizing and putting them in a organe-yellowish envelope. The envelopes were then to be sorted in the main office, where all doctor had access to them. The ones that had the correct key to that specific drawer, of course.

Checking her wrist clock, it was 22.25, a little more than half an hour, until her shift would finish. Not having much of anything to do, she shut down her desk computer and exited her office. Locking the doors, she stored the keys in her white coat.

Walking down the barely lit halways of the hospital, it seemed way bigger than when it was bussing with patients and other doctors. Sakura was heading for some refreshements, until the time would pass and she could go home.  
Sakura was texting her best friend Ino – who had a movie's night with her boyfriend Sai – about how their days went vice versa. Ino was also quick to remind the pinkette, that soon, the 6th year anniversary of Konoha High School was approaching. Not that Sakura really cared for that; she only really cared about seeing most of her friends and how they were doing. It was just formalities, all of it. But, if she'd say she wasn't going, Ino would probably drive for an hour straigh to get to her and presuade her, why she most go, and so on.

The coffee machine started to beep, alarming Sakura that the hot coffee was finished and ready to drink. Taking the plastic cup in her hands, the pinkette made a lazy sip; the though of the High School anniversary was now going to annoy her to no end. She really didn't want to go – she had more pressing matters to attent to at this hospital, and help people who were counting on her.

"What a bore…" Sakura exhaled, an annoyed sigh, which was unusual of her to do. But, it appeared when things like this would come in her life and ruin her nicely organized routine. She didn't like things – or people – messing with her day-to-day routines.

Rolling her shoulders, she'd walk back to her office, going through the same array of halways she had known by heart now. Sakura had been working here ever since she had come out of high school; and she purpously chose this one, which was the farthest from Konoha. She had only bitter experiences and memories of her home city, all thanks to … one person.

As Sakura was walking along the halways, she'd ocassionally see a collegue or two pass her, everyone was kind to her, and polite. Everybody said hello, or either slightly raised their hands, waving good-night to her.

Checking her wrist clock once more, it 22.45; only fifteen more minutes and her shift would be officially over. A small smile drew itself on the female's lips at the though of coming home, taking a bath, and maybe watch some TV before passing out in her bed.

"Ah, soon~," she sighed happily to herself; it truely was a long day, and she was ready to crash.

* * *

Her phone started buzzing in rythm, indicating that somebody was calling her mobile phone. But, before she could pull it out and answer, the two emergency doors opened behind her, four doctors running in her direction, with a bed between them, and a patient on it. The quick glance that she'd gotten at the patient, she could make out that it was a male.

"Doctor Haruno, come with us to the operating room, quickly!" One of the doctors yelled in a hurry, pushing the bed to the end of the halway and down towards the operating facility of the hospital.

"H-hai!" Sakura responded, quickly sprinting after them. Her daydreaming of coming home and watching movies was officially forgotten – there was something more important at stake; somebody's life.

Running behind the crowd of doctors, she ran to the other side of the building, where the operaings' department was. By the looks of those doctors who were transporting the patient, none of them seemed fit to actually perform the operation, but her.

Sakura entered the small white room with a bang, as the door opened quickly, but were closed behind her just as quickly.

"Quick, check his pulse and signs; keep him stable," Sakura ordered, as she was quickly putting a face mask on. "Talk to me, doctor, what happened to—" Sakura was unable to finish her sentance when she saw the deformed face of her patient. It was damaged, but not unrecognizable. It was… none other than /him/. Her green eyes widened, her mouth partially open behind the white face mask, her fingers trembling.

How in hell did he get here?

"Doctor Haruno?" one of the doctors' thankfully snapped her out of it, and she was back to normal, ignoring the face of her patient laying on the operating table.

"Yes, doctor, talk to me, what happened to this man?" Sakura questioned once more, her face facing a table by the window, as she went to put on operaing gloves.

"He was in a car accident, doctor, his wital signs are stable, but we have to operate, and besides Doctor Miyaki, you're the only doctor currently available for this operation."

Sakura nodded, understanding what was requested of her. In four large steps, she was standing besides the patient, towering down over him. Everything was ready to begin, and with a short 'beep' the light outside the room was turned on, indicating that the opeation was on it's way.

* * *

 **Author's notes: Hello!** **if you've made it through the whole story, I thank you! I apologize if there are any spelling errors~. Please review and tell me what you think? ^^**


	2. Chapter 2

**Longing – Chapter II**

The clock in the poorly lit halway read 01:10. Everything was quiet in the Osaka hospital, except for one operating room, in which Dr. Sakura Haruno was operating on a patient. A patient she'd knew intimately – but, that seemed like a life time ago.  
The monitor displaying the patient's breathing and heart beat were stable. Sakura had finished the operation on his chest, and it was a success, but they'd have to book him into the hospital for a maximum for four to five days, for him to make a full recovery.

The red light outside of the room was shut off, signaling that the operation was complete. The pink haired doctor had told the other doctor who had brough the patient here, to take him to the upper department on the 15th floor, to room C-5. He'd be alone in that room, with nobody to disturb his rest.

The doctors did as they were told, and Sakura was left in the operating room. It was this little time that she had, that she allowed herself to breathe a sigh of relief. Walking over to the sink next to the door, she removed her white gloves – now messied in thick red blood, dumping them into the trash. Pouring soap to her hands, she washed them, and refreshed her forehead with some much needed cold water.  
Hands holding on either sides' of the sink, she leaned forward slightly, looking at herself in the small mirror. Her face was covered with mixed emotions – in short, she looked like crap. Of course, she'd normally be shaken up by having to operate on somebody. But, this wasn't just somebody, was it?

Sakura breathed out a sigh of relief, exiting the operating room. No, this wasn't just anybody… it was Sasuke. /The/ Sasuke Uchiha. The pinkette shook her head immediately, not wanting for the thoughs of his name to dominate her, again. They'd – she'd been through this once before, and it drove her crazy. She was no longer a sixteen year old teenager, hopelessly in love with him. She was /doctor/ Haruno now. And she took a bloody vow to her work – she was dressed in white & her life was devoted to saving others. Sakura wouldn't allow anybody to destroy, or get in the way of this life that she'd created for herself out here.

Not even Sasuke Uchiha.

Slowly walking down halway, she eventually made it to her own office. Previously, she had planned to lock up for the day and go home, but she watned to type out a report on what had happened, and she'd need to put Sasuke's information into the system.

And so, another fourty-five minutes went by, by the time Sakura was finished putting all of Sasuke's information into the system. Shutting off the desk computer once more, she pushed the keyboard towards the screen. Sakura leaned back, againts the chair, her fingers in her pink hair, lightly pulling on it.

Checking her wrist watch, she noted that it was late. And it now dawned on her, just how drained she was. And it was only Monday. Another sigh escaped her lips as she was locking up her own office for the second time that day. Putting her keys into their usual spot in her white coat, she continued to walk the familiar path – down the halways.

But this time, she was walking rather aimlessly; her brain was somewhere else, and it annoyed the pinkette to no end. This is what she hated the most, how one person could make her feel this way. Spin her head around like nothing else mattered, and make her feel like her life depended on /him/. Sakura squeezed her hand together into a fist; she should know better. If she decides to go down this way of thinking she'll end up exactly in the same spot she had been in when she was sixteen. That's the last thing she wanted to feel.

* * *

Instead of arriving at the dressing room, she was staring at the writing on the door: C-5. Sasuke's room. Closing her eyelids, she pressed her palm againts the door knob, while the other pushed a stray of hair behind her shoulder.

Would it really be such a sin if she checked up on him? Since she was the one to operate on him, he was techincally her patient, after all. Sakura stood outside of the room for a while, listening carefully if there were any noises coming from the room. Nothing. Silently turning the door knob, she pushed the doors inward and stepped in. The room was pretty dark, but Sasuke's bed and his face, were lit up by the light coming from the large window behind him. Walking to the side of the bed, the doctor just looked down at his sleeping face. Turning to face the computer monitoring his wital signs, he seemed to be doing okay. Still, she couldn't just go home and leave him here all by himself. She'd have to call somebody to take the night shift and look after him, in case he wakes up.  
"It's been so long… Sasuke-kun," Sakura breathed out softly, caressing his cheek with the back of her index finger. Fixing his messy hair out of his face, she took another good look at him; he'd aged well. But, he'd also changed a lot since she'd last seen him. His hair was longer, and was no longer as spikey as it used to be. The pinkette smiled softly to herself; still, she never imagined they'd ever be in this position.

"Rest well, anata," she uttered quietly, before heading out the door.

Sakura slowly closed the door behind her, and walked down into the main hall, not far from Sasuke's room. Pulling out her phone, she dialed a Hinata's number.

"Hey, Hinata, I'm sorry for calling you at such a late hour, but could you come in and do the night shift please? I'll explain everything when you arrive. Meet me at the 15th floor, something came up."

Sakura was pacing up and down the halway, as she was waiting for Hinata to come over. While doing so, she also texted Ino. And, Ino being Ino, responded quickly; probably in the same second that the text message was delivered asking a million and one question, and Sakura had prosimed to explain everything to the blonde during coffee one time.

Every now and then, Sakura's pink head would look into Sasuke's room, analyzing the monitor displaying his signs, her green eyes would linger on his face for a few moments, then she'd exit back into the empty halway. It was probably around two in the morning now, and she'd have to take both Hinata and Naruto out for dinner one time, as a thank you.

"Hey, Sakura-chan, I came as quickly as I could," came the Hyuga's voice from behind the pinkette, casuing her to spun around on her heel, hearing the familiar voice of her dark haired friend.

"Oh, arigato, Hinata, for coming." Sakura walked over to Hinata, taking her hands in her own as she thanked her. The other nodded, with a shy, friendly smile on her cheeks as always. Sakura held her hands for a moment longer, before letting go, turning to motion towards the doors that Sasuke was in.

"Don't freak out, Hinata, but," the pinkette turned her gaze from the door and back to Hinata as she spoke. "I… Sasuke Uchiha was brough here earlier this evening, and I was the only doctor to operate on him—it was a success, but, with not much doctors around, I wanted somebody I can trust to look after him." Sakura was quick to explain the current situation. Giving Hinata a few moments to analyze the situation, the pink haired doctor gazed deeply into the others' pale eyes, searching for answers – a reaction.

Hinata seemed stunned and surprised at first, as she listened to Sakura speak, but was quick to have a friendly look back on her face. Nodding her head, Hinata was quick to reassure Sakura that she'd look after him, and would call her if there were to be any change in Sasuke's state.

"Arigato gozaimas, Hinata." Sakura thanked her friend again, pulling her into a quick hug, before she left to go home. She knew that she could trust Hinata, and that Sasuke was now in good hands.  
Still, there was something at the back of her mind, eating away at her… she could only pray that the situation doesn't get any worse. But, Sasuke was one of the strongest people she knew; he'll pull through. He had to.

* * *

The drive home was spend in silence, the radio station was the Osaka music channel, but it was at a low volume, and Sakura was barely paying any attention to it. Her mind was beginning to shut, and she was already planning for the next day, and everything she had to prepare. But at the same time, all she wanted to do was get home, and sleep for a month.

Once the pinkette got home, a quick warm-up can of ramen followed for dinner, nothing to fancy, as she had originally planned. A fast shower, and then she slid into her usual gray pyjamas. It was around 03:30 that she fell asleep that night, her dreams being polluted by memories long forgotten.

* * *

 **Author's note: All & every review is welcomed!:) and please, give some constructive criticism~.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Longing – Chapter III.**

It was the usual beeping of her alarm clock that caused Sakura to wake up unpleasantly. Going to sleep at such a late – early? – hour, was not really anything new for the doctor, as she had pulled all-nighters times before, but this time, it felt more personal than other times that she would stay up, long into the night, researching various subject, and analyzing patients and their illnesses.

Rubbing the sleepiness out of her green hues, the pink haired doctor forced herself awake, kicking the bed sheets off of herself rather violently. However, she stood up a few seconds to early, as the whole room started spinning as if she had drank too many shots the previous day. Heh, when was the last time Sakura Haruno went to a party?  
Sitting back down on the edge of the bed, she sighed, running a hand through her pink locks, looking at herself in the mirror on the wardrobe. She looked like a mess, but it was nothing that a hot cup of coffee and a quick shower couldn't fix.

What followed was Dr. Sakura's usual routine; she'd take a quick shower and get dressed in simple clothing, as the rest of her day would be spend in a white doctors' coat, no matter what she wore.

Sakura didn't bother spending too much time at home, she drank her coffee unusually quick, and before she knew it, she found herself in the dressing room, getting changed into her usual wear. The ride from her apartment to the hospital was more of a blur, than anything else.

Walking down the familiar halways, the pink haired doctor, as per usual, was greeted by friends and collegues' alike. Coming into her office, she unlocked the door, stepping in. Before she could even settle in, she got a text message from Hinata. Sakura's heart skipped a beat, giving the doctor a almost unfamiliar feeling. Nervousness. She was probably nervous, or anxcious to hear how yesterday night went.

[TEXT from: Hinata Hyuuga]

 _~Hey, Sakura-chan, I just wanted to quickly text you & give you an update on Sasuke. I checked on him, just as you had requested me and he was doing fine. He woke up at around 4 o'clock and he was shocked, but I managed to calm him down. He feel asleep after that. I suggest you go and talk to him. He seemed pretty confused last night._

 _-H._

That annoying feeling settled in Sakura's stomack once more, and the pinkette hated it. Maybe it was because she hadn't had a proper meal last night or this morning? But she never ate a proper breakfast-.

Shrugging her shoulders, she rubbed her temples, closing her eyes. Leaning back in her office chair, she let out a deep sigh. She knew it wasn't because of a lack of food. She was simply nervous to go talk to him. It was all so easy last night, because he was sleeping. God knows how he'd react when he'd see her. See her as his doctor… God, why?

The pinkette rolled her eyes, she was having a fight with herself at this point. It was the ''Sasuke Uchiha syndrome'', as Ino called it, once upon a time. And it took a lot of time and hard work to get him out of her system.. but he was here again, and it seemed like there was no going back. Well, she could send a nurses to go talk to him, but they didn't know all the details of his current condition and surgery.  
Rolling her sleeves up to her elbows, she picked up her mobile phone from her coat pocket, and typed a quick 'thank you' to Hinata.

[TEXT to: Hinata Hyuuga]

 _~Ohaiyo, Hinata. Arigato, for taking care of Sasuke-kun.. [backspace] – Mr. Uchiha for me last night. I owe you one. I'll be treating you for dinner, possibly this Saturday, if you're available?_  
 _-Dr. Sakura._

Letting out a sigh of relief, Sakura put her phone in it's place in her coat. Turning on the computer, she quickly ran through the files, and if anyone had added anything to Sasuke's list. There was nothing new yet. She's probably have to fill in everything later, and add his current condition to the list, then prescribe a recovery method.  
Which meant, there was only one thing to do currently: go check up on him. Checking her wrist watch, it was 8:30, and it was past breakfast time. She doubted he'd be able to eat anything proper, due to his injury. His chest must still be sore from the surgery, but other than that, he should be okay. Well, as okay as a man can be in this situation.

Rising from her desk, she stood by it for a couple of more minutes, waiting, as if somebody was miraciously going to walk through her door, saying they needed her help somewhere. But, that didn't happen.

"Besides, the sooner you face him, the sooner you can fill out a report about him and move on to other patients.." Sakura mummbled to herself, but more than anything, she was persuading herself, that this wasn't going to be as horrible, or awkward as she had imagined.

* * *

In the next four to five minutes, Sakura was in front of Sasuke's room. Like last night, there were no sounds coming from the other side of the room. Maybe he was still sleeping? It was a possibility, considering his injuries.

Stedying both her breathing, and her fast heart beat, she turned the door knob, pushing the door in, with her usual ''doctorly smile''.

Stepping into the room, she closed the door behind her.

"Ohaiyo, Mr. Uchiha _." Is she really going to act as if she didn't know him? Well, it was also possible he - ._

"Sakura?" _Shit._

Sakura was surprised, but as doing a damn good job at hiding it. It this was herself back from high school, she'd be stumbling over her words, and blushing at every little thing he said. But this was another time entierly.

"Ohaiyo … Sasuke," she responded, taking a few steps closer to him, so she was standing to his left, looking at him with eyes full of concern. Sakura opened her mouth to speak, but Sasuke beat her to it.

"Sakura…? What are you doing here? Are you-." he didn't finish wording his question. Sakura's guess was, that he didn't really know how to word his question, so she did her best, to answer for him.

Pulling a nearby chair to his side, she sat down, resting a hardboard and a paper on her lap, if she'd need to write down how he felt, his vital signs, and so on. Taking a few moments to word her answer in her thoughs, she took a deep breathe before speaking.

Sasuke, as was in his nature, stayed patient, and he looked at her.. for the first time, with interest for what she had to say to him.

"I know it's been a couple of years since he last saw echoder, Sasuke," she said, her green eyes meeting his dark ones. "I've moved out of Konoha right after graduation, and I soon started working here. Now, I am head doctor of this department." She bit down her lower lip, giving hima few moments to procees the information; she knew this would be a lot for him to take in, in this state.

"Sasuke … You had an accident last night.. do you remember?"

Sasuke nodded in response. He looked past her as he spoke, trying to recall as much as he could. "Yes, I remember. I remember driving to my apartment, after checking out a new house I was going to move into. Then… some asshole drove past the red light, while I was making a turn … then everything went dark." he finished his sentance, groaning slightly, his hand reaching for the bandages on his chest, where he was operated.

"Try not to move to much," Sakura reached for his hand instinctly, preventing from him to touching his chest area. Their eyes met once more; and Sakura felt a blush creeping itself onto her face, so she let go of his hand.

"Sorry," she cleared her throat, keeping her voice stedy. "Please don't touch the bandages too much, so that you don't accidently undo or damage them."

He only nodded in response. Only after such a brief conversation, he looked worn out and tired.

"I promise I won't be long.. But, from one to ten, how great is your pain?" Sakura questioned, pulling out her pen, ready to write down his answer.

"Seven? Or maybe eight?" Sasuke sounded unsure, but the pain was great.

The pinkette was quick to scribble it all down in her notes. She stood up, so she was practically leaning over him, as she examined him and his bandages. Redness could be seen on the sides of the bandages, and judging by his worn out and tired expression, he must be in worse pain that he though.

And so, there and now, Sakura made a decision, even though all of her senses were telling her otherwise.

"You'll be placed under my care. However, I have to take care of my other patients and check up on them. I'll ask a nurse to bring you medicine, and to inject you with some pain relievers." Sakura offered him a weak smile, although Sasuke's eyes were already closing, and she only wondered if he had heard everything she said. Her only response was a mummbled ''mmmhm''. Sakura nodded her head in answer, heading towards the door. Before she left, she turned to take one last glance of him, before leaving him for the day.

"I'll take care of you, Sasuke-kun."

* * *

 **A/N: well, this chapter III is up & I hope you enjoyed it!:) Yaaay, Sakura and Sasuke finally interacted! More fluff / sweet moments will come later between them. And I might write something short from Sasuke's point of view, in the following chapters. **

**Enjoy, read & review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Longing – chapter IV**

* * *

 _. . .the world is full of magic . . ._

* * *

Sakura exited Sasuke's room and headed to check up on other patients for the day. It was part of her usual routine, asking them how they felt, and checking their pulse, sugar status, and so on. For some their conditions remained the same, and some were recovering. After she'd scribble down the results for all of them, she'd go back to her office and type it all into the data base. After that followed lunch, and then she was simply assisting other nurses, or would sometimes take over, if people came for check ups or for medication.

And in the evening, it was time to visit Sasuke again. But by the time Sakura had gotten to his room, he was sleeping peacefully. The computer displaying his signs showed that everything was as it should be and while he was sleeping Sakura checked his pulse, which wasn't as fast as it was in the morning, it was stable now. After that, she had to do a report for the day, quickly explaining the situation of every patient under her care.

Soon, this became a routine. Sakura would check on Sasuke in the mornings and in the evenings, when he was usually already fast asleep, due to having a long day, but the recovery was slowly, but surely working and some color was returning to his pale face.

* * *

One afternoon, Sakura was talking with Hinata in the cafeteria of the hospital, where they had lunch together. Sakura had some fried chicken meat along with some vegetables, and Hinata had ramen.

"Naruto-kun's really rubbing of on you, isn't he?" Sakura commented teasingly, raising her fork at the other female.

"Oh?" Hinata looked up from her plate at the pinkette, but simply shrugged it off, offering a small smile. "I suppose when you live with somebody, it becomes second nature to also like to eat what they eat." the black haired nurse explained, shrugging her shoulders once more.

"I guess so. Also, I promised to take you and Naruto out for dinner, maybe this Saturday?"

"I'll have to check with Naruto about his shifts, but yeah, we could go," Hinata said. Taking another bite of her food, the two stayed in silence, eating.

"By the way, Sakura-chan … how is Sasuke?" Hinata broke the silence questioning the pink haired doctor.

Sakura almost choked on her piece of meat, but quickly watered it down with some juice. Trying not to blush in front of her friend, Sakura's hands went through her pink locks – an act she always did when nervous, or slightly unconfortable.

"Well," Sakura began, clearing her throat. "He's certainly much better than the day after the operation, but," the pinkette's arms visibly dropped, her head slightly hung low. "I think he'll need to stay.. for at least another week. He's also gonna need to be on a diet. It would need to be a while before his stomack can take more heavy food…" Sakura sighed heavily, pushing her plate of food away from her. Pressing her palm to her forehead, she could already feel a headache throbing.

"Sakura-chan, you worry too much for him." Hinata said softly, reaching for Sakura's hand with her own, giving it a light squeeze. "You need to relax more, Sasuke's going to be fine," for a while, silence dawned over the two women, before Hinata flashed a grin, raising a finger in the air, indicating that she had an idea.

"Sakura-chan, why don't you let me take care of some of your patients, which are recovering? That way, you could spend more time taking care of Sasuke."

Sakura raised her head up, looking at Hinata, suprised, but grateful for the offer. "Would you do that for me, Hinata? Because that way, I could look after him better, and maybe he'd recover sooner.."

The conversation was unfortunetly brough to a quick end, as Sakura felt her phone buzzing in her coat's pocket. "Ah, gomen, just a second Hinata." Taking her hand away from Hinatas', Sakura retrieved her phone, unlocking it. Checking it, she had a text message from an unknown number.

 _[TEXT from: Unknown]_

 _Will you come see me after lunch, before I fall asleep in the evening? I haven't seen much of you in these days, due to exhaustion, and I'd like to talk with you._

 _-S_

Like a knife wound through her heart, a stinch of pain was send through Sakura's system, and it must've been all over her face.

"Sakura-chan? You're… pale. Who texted you?" Hinata asked, concern in her eyes for the pink haired doctor.

Sakura was quick to scold her facial expression back into a neutral one, putting her mobile phone back into her coat pocket. Shaking her head, she sighed, looking into Hinata's white eyes. In the corners' of Sakura's green eyes, there was a feeling of.. surprise, stunningness and expectation.

"It was Sasuke-kun."

* * *

Standing in front of the room C-5, Sakura's eyes quickly flew through the text message that she had gotten from him earlier. _He still has my phone number? It's been almost 8 years!_

The pink haired doctor calmed herself, stedying her heartbeat, and nervous breathing. Tightening her pony tail at the back of her head, she pushed the door inwards, stepping in.

"Hello, Mr. Uchiha," as always, she offered him one of her friendly doctor smiles. When she took a good look at him, the upper part of his bed was raised, making him appear as if he was almost sitting up.

"Don't you think we know echoder enough for you to just call me Sasuke?" her black haired patient asked, with his usual smirk. Last time she saw that infamous smirk, was eight years ago.

Fixing a stray of her losened hair behind her ear she walked over beside his bed, sitting down on the chair, where she'd usually sit for these meetings of theirs.

"/Sasuke/," the pinkette forced the words out of her throat. It was much.. harder saying his name to him now, that he was fully awake and not half drugged or half asleep. Actually, it might have felt like freaking deja vu to Sakura. Last time they had honestly talked was also.. eight years ago, back in high school.

"I see you.. have my phone number. Are you not feeling well? Is there anything you need? Is the pain getting worse?"

"No, Sakura," he simply responded, keeping his dark black eyes locked with her green ones, while Sakura felt like a child again, her green eyes flickering all around the room, looking anywhere, but at him. She was not yet ready to face him. "I just wanted to talk to you.. spend more time with you… And, I have a few questions for you."

 _Well, this certainly wasn't what I was expecting._

Sakura nodded her head, placing her small note book and pencil on a small table behind where she was sitting. The pinkette finally allowed herself to look at his face; he was always beautiful. But now, those features of his just hit her more, and the sunlight kissing his face didn't really help the matter of high lighting just how good he looked, after all these years and considering what he's just been through.

Clearing her throat, she nodded once more, motioning for him to speak and ask his questions. "Alright, ask." _You can ask me anything._

"Will I be okay in time to make it to the High school reuinion?"

 _He … wants to go to that thing? Sasuke Uchiha wants to go to the /Konoha High/ reuinion? He hasn't been to any in previous years!_

Sakura practically screamed at him … more, at herself than him for keeping track of when he attended these little reuinions. Lightly scratching the back of her head, Sakura turned to pick her note book from the table, flickering through some pages. Pressing the pen to her lower lip, twirling it, she though about his condition for a while, before giving him the asnwer. And, Sasuke stayed patient, his dark eyes studying her, never tearing his gaze from her face.

"Well, I can't guarantee you a hundred per cent that you /will/ be okay," she started carefully, her eyes looking at him to see his reaction, but he didn't even flinch, he only kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to continue speaking.

"But, you are recovering, Sasuke. And, in a few days, I'll send Hinata to you, to help you get back on your feet. Also," she added scribbling down in her note book while she spoke. "you may have already noticed, but I've perscribed you a special diet.. because of the operation on your chest and stomack." she finished explaining the situation, closing her note book and putting it away.

At this Sasuke nodded his head. She though he'd look hurt at not being guaranteed to go to the school reuinion, but knowing him, he probably didn't care much for it.

"I see. Thanks, Sakura. There's something else -, if I do recover by that time … would you go with me? I haven't really been to any others, and I don't wanna appear alone there. Also, I should thank you for saving my life /somehow/."

Sakura raised her head, her green eyes meeting his dark ones for the first time in eight years. She was stunned, and she didn't bother hiding the blush that was drawn all over her face. She couldn't control it; her heartbeat had raised again, and it felt as it might pop out of her chest.

"I-, Sasuke, you.. are you sure you want me there by you?" _Well, didn't he just say he wants you there? Did he really not have any other questions concerning his health, since he could've died?_

Sasuke firmly nodded his head, he also managed a small, almost unseeming smirk to cross his lips. He was probably proud of the fact that he made her feel helpless and flustered in front of him.

"Yes, I'm sure I _want_ you, Sakura."

* * *

"HE SAID /WHAT/?!"

Ino yelled through the other side of the phone, and if Sakura hadn't been laying in bed, and was standing up, she'd probably land on the floor from the yell that her blond friend had given her.

"Yes, he asked if hell be better by the time the school reuinion rolls around, and then, he practically asked me to be his date for that night." the pinkette explained quickly, switching to a sitting position in her bed, her bed sheets only half covering her body.

"Are you sure he was only asking you to be his date for the night? You know how men are-."

"Ino, this is Sasuke Uchiha. He may be in a hospital bed now, but you know how much of a playboy he was back in school-"

"Yes, but, my dear Sakura Haruno, need /I/ remind you, that it has been eight years since high school? Crist, the man saved your phone number for a whole of eight years. Also, he said what? That he wants to spend more time with you? The man's lying in a hospital bed and he's a better flirt than Sai was when we first met-."

Admittely, the comment about Sai being a bad flirt made Sakura crack up, just a little bit, and on Ino's line, she could hear Sai complaining, only for Ino to shush him.

"Thanks for your advice Ino… but this time I'd rather wait, untill I dwell into something deeper with him.. if it ever even comes that far." Sakura mummbled the last part, more to herself than to Ino. But of course, Ino heard her.

"Sakura.. just be careful around him. Anyway, I have to go now, I'm having dinner with Sai and his family in a few, and I have to get ready. But, feel free to text me, and I'll call you tomorrow again! Same time as today?" Ino's voice turned from a sincere back to it's usual cheerful tone.

"Oh, hai, hai! Have fun you two, and say 'hi' to Sai for me! It's been long since I've seen him!" Sakura's voice mirrored Ino's now, gone was the hint of sadness in her voice.

"Okay, bye now, /bilboard forehead/!"

"Bye, Ino .. /pig/." Sakura giggled, teasing her blonde friend with their usual friendly 'insults' they've had since kindergarden.

* * *

The rest of the evening went without much of anything happening. Sakura was finally able to take a long and relaxing bath that she had wanted and was able, for just a couple of moments, take her mind off of work, the school reuinion coming up in february .. off of Sasuke.

Picking up the soap, she started to clean her arms with it in a circular motion, slowly, taking her time with it. It had a pleasant cherry smell. The pinkette had a small smile on her lips, enjoying little moments like these, where her mind could just shut off, not having to plat ahead, and just focus on what she enjoyed.

After she was done washing herself, she poured some shampoo on her hands, washing her long pink hair with it. But, her thoughs, kept escaping to Sasuke. They never really dated. It wasn't anything serious, besides, they were only in high school by then, and he had girls trowing themselves at his feet.

It was a miracle that he chose her out of the bunch. She got a lot of nasty looks back then. But even then, their romance only lasted for 8 months, before he ungracefully broke it off, saying she was becoming an annoyance.

 _An annoyance …_

The pinkette groaned in frustration as her brain recalled the painful memories of their break up. Memories Sakura had surpressed deep within her mind, memories she wanted to forget, forever. But, seeing his face, seeing him so volunrable, … and being /kind/ to her … it only served to give her false hope, that there could be something more. True, Sasuke from high school would only be using sweet words as a painful tactic to get what he wanted – in this case get her to go to the Konoha High reuinion with him. But, when has Sasuke ever cared for such things? And yet, on the other hand … eight years had gone by. Maybe he really has changed?

* * *

Sakura laid in bed, her mind was still on Sasuke, and she was debating on all the possibilites, twists and turns which could occur in her life, in the following months. He'll be out of the hospital, in a few weeks, possibly in the next two weeks .. but, they'll still have to see echoder outside of the hospital. Or at least, he'd have to give her his new phone number, to discuss where and when he'll pick her up …

Rolling onto her stomack, she pulled the covers over her bed, closing her eyes and allowing for sleep to take her.

* * *

 **A/N: boy! I think this is one of the longest chapters I've written! ^_^ & I'm happy that things between the two are finally progressing, and I'm slowly laying out some ground-work for the plot! :) Also, I won't write as Sasuke being in the hospital for too long, as he and Sakura have.. things to talk over, and things to attend to!**

 **But, as always, please enjoy, read & review!**


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